Overviews of the evidence - Systematic reviews

What are Systematic Reviews?
Systematic reviews attempt to provide an overview of primary research on a particular topic of interest that use explicit and reproducble methods to minimise bias. The main crux of a systematic review is the literature search, if all the evidence (both published and unpublished) is not considered the results of the review will be flawed.


How do they differ from a Review?
A review article may be selective in the choice of research to review in order to support a particular viewpoint. They may not be explicit about the types of studies included.

What are the advantages of Systematic Reviews?

• Aim to minimise the bias of a review (e.g. publication and language bias)
• Explicit in the research process
• Allow control over a mass of research literature
• They can save you time locating all the evidence on a particular topic

What are the disadvantages of Systematic Reviews?

• Can be broad in the nature of the topic under review
• May disguish important differences in individual studies included
• Can be difficult to generalise the results to a specific population because of the scope

Where can I find them?
The Cochrane Library contains 2 systematic review databases - The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews are full text systematic reviews undertaken by The Cochrane Collaboration. Generally they look at examining the effectiveness of health care interventions.

The Database of Abstracts of Effects (DARE) can also be searched via The Cochrane Library (known as 'Other reviews') or via The Centre for Reviews and Dissemination. Short critically appraised summaries of the systematic review are provided.

The Joanna Briggs Institute links to references of systematic reviews, whose eclectic nature is popular with many nurse managers. The focus is on clinically and economically appropriate and effective healthcare outcomes for clients and communities.

TRIP (turning Research into Practice) allows you to filter references to systematic reviews from a wide range of Evidence Based Resources.

The Healthcare Databases (MEDLINE, CINAHL etc) all contain references to systematic reviews. In PubMed you can use the limit function to narrow down your search to Systematic Reviews.

More information on Systematic Reviews including the Research Methodology and Critical Appraisal of Systematic Reviews can be found on the Introduction to Systematic Reviews/Meta-analysis Workshop at Aintree Library (dates to be confirmed at the end of November and will be advertised via the blog).

NLH - Neurological Conditions Specialist Library

Tomorow sees the launch of the new Neurological Conditions Specialist Library at the Association of British Neurologists' Meeting. As part of the National Library of Health, the Specialist Library aims to keep health care professionals and patients up to date with best evidence in neurological conditions and has a UK focus.

Many of you will know Professor Chadwick from the Walton Centre for Neurology and Neurosurgery, he is the clinical lead for the Specialist Library and a number of colleagues working at the Walton Centre are also involved in leading on topics within the Library (e.g. Epilepsy).

You can browse the topics on the left hand side or perform a simple search to locate guidelines, evidence (including systematic reviews), reference material, education/CPD and patient information. The site also links to the latest medical news in the field of Neurology.

Evidence updates currently available on this site include:

Epilepsy Annual Update (October 2007) highlighting knowledge published in the field of epilepsy since 2005.

Parkinson’s Disease Annual Evidence Update (May 2007) highlighting evidence published within the last two years on concerning the diagnosis, treatment and management of this condition.

Looking for Images or photos to download for presentations?

NHS Photo Library
The images in the NHS Photo Library mainly feature staff and patients in different situations (for example, staff in a meeting, a doctor discussing patient care). All of the people involved have given their consent for the images to be used by NHS or social care organisations. In addition, their are no copyright issues if the images are used within the NHS or social care.

You will need to register for access to the NHS Photo Library. All you need is an email address that ends in either nhs.uk (this would be your work email) or nhs.net. If you don't have an NHS email you need to arrange for a 'sponsor' who does have an NHS email address to confirm that you are employed by the NHS.

National Library for Health Image Search
The National Library for Health Image search is a great way to search across a range of purely medical image collections - including some not available for free on the web. You will need your NHS Athens username to see the full size versions of these.

You get an instant preview and far reduce your risk in terms of copyright. The images include Gray's Anatomy, dermatological images, ECG traces and more - all searched from a single box!

Word of caution using Google images
While you can find images using Google you may well find an awful lot of junk before you find a high quality image. You also need to be aware that using images sourced from the web can leave you in a dubious position in terms of copyright.

National Library for Health - downtime Mon 5th Nov 2007

The National Library for Health will be offline between 5pm-6pm on Monday 5th November 2007 due to an upgrade.

For those of you who access databases this way please use the LIRC website to login.

Writing for publication guidelines

A new website EQUATOR (Enhancing the QUAlity and Transparency Of health Research) is a new initiative that seeks to improve the quality of scientific publications by promoting transparent and accurate reporting of health research.

The website offers guidance for authors on the various guidelines (CONSORT, QUROUM, etc) available for the reporting of different types of research methodologies.

Initially funded by the NHS National Knowledge Service, the website is currently being developed and expanded to include information for authors (e.g. when should you start thinking about writing for publication) and journal editors and peer reviewers.